The Best Olympic Stadiums in the World
The world turns its eyes on the Olympics every four years. In addition to the ceremony, the stadiums are dressed up for the occasion. In this article, we’ll tell you about the best Olympic stadiums that have hosted this event.
What are the best Olympic stadiums?
An Olympic stadium, as its name implies, is where the Olympics are hosted, either in the summer or winter. Usually, they use this venue for the opening and closing ceremonies and some competitions, including athletics.
Also, the stadiums can be used for other important events, such as a World Cup in soccer, or as a home to local teams. Some of the most famous, beautiful, and impressive are:
1. Best Olympic stadiums: London Olympic stadium
The London Olympic Stadium is located in the British capital and was the main venue of the 2012 Games. It was built in 2008 and opened just for the start of the Games.
After this competition, it became the home of West Ham and holds up to 60,000 fans. In addition, it hosted the World Athletics Championships.
The London Olympic Stadium was designed by a company that specialized in sports facilities. In fact, the most notable feature is the circular hanging ceiling, which is held together by steel cables.
2. Berlin Olympic stadium
This stadium is in Charlottenburg in the German capital. Its inauguration was on August 1, 1936, to host the Olympic Games that year. After some renovations, they also used it in two world championships: both in 1974 and 2006.
The Olympic Stadium in Berlin (on the cover) was built in two years on another venue that was built in 1913. The idea was to use it in the 1916 Games, but WWI put a stop to that. Currently, it holds almost 75,000 people, and it’s home to the Hertha Berlin team.
3. Best Olympic stadiums: Rome Olympic stadium
The history of this stadium is fascinating. The idea of building it began in 1927 and the construction ended in 1937. In fact, it was in the framework of a project for a sports city called Foro Mussolini. In 1950, they decided to rebuild it and increase the capacity so it could host the Olympics in 1960.
The new stadium was inaugurated in 1953, with a match between the teams from Italy and Hungary. During the 1960 Olympics in Rome, it hosted the opening and closing ceremonies and the athletics events. However, the current venue isn’t the original. For the 1990 World Cup, they demolished it and built another, stronger stadium with reinforced concrete.
4. Tokyo Olympic stadium
Soccer fans surely know this stadium because it hosted the Intercontinental Cup between 1980 and 2004. However, this stadium also has an Olympic history. It was built in 1958 to host that year’s Asian Games, then the 1964 Olympics.
In 2015, they demolished it to increase its capacity. Now, it houses 80,000 spectators. The new venue will be the main venue for the upcoming Tokyo 2021 Olympics.
5. Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium
If you’re walking around Barcelona and you love the Olympics, you should go to Montjuic. There, you can find one of the best Olympic stadiums, rebuilt in 1991- the original one from 1929- so they could host the Olympics that year.
With a capacity for 60,000 spectators, the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium was later used by RCD Espanyol (1997-2009) for the Mediterranean Games, sports competitions, the Spanish Cup and the Spanish Super Cup.
6. Helsinki Olympic stadium
The last of the best Olympic stadiums on this list is the largest sports venue in Finland. It opened in 1938- after four years of construction. Additionally, it can hold over 70,000 spectators.
It was used in the 1952 Olympics, and one of its main features is its 230-feet-high tower. It’s open to the public, and you can see the city from up high.
It was renovated in the early 1990s and hosted the 2005 World Athletics Championships. With a current capacity for 40,000 spectators- after another renovation-it’s home to the Finnish soccer team.
Finally, some of the other best Olympic stadiums to highlight are Seoul, Luzhniki (Moscow), Montreal (Canada), and Antwerp (Netherlands). Which of them have you been lucky enough to see? Which ones would you like to visit on your next vacation?
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Clarin Deportes. La inauguración del Estadio Olímpico de Tokio 2020: Usain Bolt, 60.000 espectadores y poco impacto ambiental. Diciembre 2019. https://www.clarin.com/deportes/inauguracion-estadio-olimpico-tokio-2020-usain-bolt-60-000-espectadores-impacto-ambiental_0_OZUY7hy1.html
- El País. El estadio olímpico de Londres se hace futbolero. Agosto de 2016. https://elpais.com/deportes/2016/08/04/actualidad/1470268352_098965.html
